Tag: weigthtraining

So I’ve been a little absent from the whole internet-y social media world as of late. While I’m all too aware that 90% of what you see online is fake or only the absolutely best snippets of someone’s life, I found myself profoundly affected by having a 24/7 view-only access to lifestyles that were completely unachievable for me.

So I opted to take a hiatus from all of it; it was doing nothing for my self-esteem and my 2017 has been hard enough without that shit. Amazingly within the space of week I already felt better, the frighteningly long hours that I would have wasted each day on Facebook etc, I spent doing things I actually enjoy. Hell even just sitting staring into space was a vastly more enjoyable activity that looking at “#blessed” 4 million times over.

It’s been a couple of months without (maybe 3/4ish) and now. I feel like I come back at this world with a plan of what I want out of social media. For me I’ve realised for me the enjoyment is in being useful and relatable and to me that means it’s about blogs and sharing with people who enjoy life while being grounded in reality.

I love to learn and get a bit of a useful hint, tip or solution to get me through life and last year I learned countless useful bits and pieces around FODMAP/IBS on various blogs. On instagram and the like, I’ve enjoyed seeing everyday people just getting on with it. I like people who share all that it takes to achieve a goal and then seeing them achieve it, people that tell you honestly what it takes, proper blood sweat and tears (and food of course). I’ll believe the badass Lifter that eats a balanced diet and treats themselves to a pizza before I’ll believe the person that tells you the only way to be like them is some random companies fat burning supplements. The last thing I want is another year of scrolling through nonsense where “athletes” spew out nothing but motivational quotes and constant product placement (lets be real here, we’d all think your products were great if we got them massively discounted or even for free).

So for 2018 I’m getting really real about shit. Instagram, I’ll follow you if your interesting, if you’re about food and lifting we’ll get along just smashingly! If you’re about showing off wealth and the kind of fitness where all you do is take constant gym selfies or any other posing selfie and post ABSOLUTELY ZERO workout or fitness activity I don’t think we’re meant to be.

Also (my main rant about instagram) No longer will I follow people if they only follow me so that I’ll be polite and follow back and then immediately unfollow me (seriously how shitty is that?!). I want to enjoy Instagram the way I did in the begging and if that means quality not quantity; sure I won’t end up “insta-famous” but I’d rather have 10 awesome followers I can relate to than 10,000 shite ones.

So this year I’m all about me; and here’s what you should know

I’m no ones “ambassador” or “athlete”, though I will constantly share photos of my socks cause I love them (I buy every pair with my own hard earned pennies).

I’ll constantly talk about food, like 99.9% of it will be about food.

I’ll seldom post photos of me posing in the gym, I go to the gym to lift and you should too

Sometimes (rarely) I’ll post a photo of me, the reason will be I feel particularly proud of myself that day and also I suppose it helps to see what all my eating and lifting is achieving. Though said photos will never involve any expected stereotypical female fitness pose (we’re all equal and I show off the guns if I want dammit)

I’ll complain when it gets tough or sometimes (heaven forbid) I’ll skip a workout, cause sometimes I’d rather just sit on my ass.

I’ll give you this one motivational quote (just in case you really need one) “Rome wasn’t built in a day”. If you can appreciate and accept that, you’ll figure out how to achieve your goals.

So for now it’s bring on 2018, hopefully I can stay strong and keep at it (blogging and lifting)! Below is me being fearsome for your enjoyment… hehehe

So I’m 4 weeks into the new training plan but admittedly I’ve experienced my first set back: I went on holiday…
Now it was an awesome holiday (I recommend Croatia for holidaying) but my willpower folded at the first dinner. The food was AMAZING (and all good clean food) but I ate far too much of and I am now paying the price (I’ll post my recovery efforts another time).

So with this in mind my stats are not really a good indicator of my efforts this time

So worth noting that my leg measurement has gone up a teeny wee bit so there is progress and my lifts are increasing each week. In fact yesterday was my first post-holiday leg day so there are some rather powerful doms today!

So we’ve got some gains (although mostly in the wrong place due to my being greedy) but now with all that good holiday grub behind me I can push on and work it!

I shoud point out that I have never skipped leg day, my legs just look like they’ve never seen a squat rack. They are pretty tough but while I’ve buit up their strength, the definition is lacking and this displeases me greatly!

To mark the beginning of #GetReal; I figure the best place to start is with me; so here’s my story. It’s admittedly not the most exciting or life changing but, as is the purpose of #GetReal, it’s a real and unedited story.

My transformation isn’t about dramatic weight loss, yes like most, I’ve been heavier than I wanted to be, but I’ve never been in the medically defined “overweight” category. My issue was that, as of late was I was growing into a terrible snacker. I was starting to feel as though I had no “off” switch when it came to snacks (why eat one biscuit when you can eat the whole pack then that’s it gone right?) It was a habit that if I didn’t bring no check I was going to lose control…

On a separate (but related) note, my interest in weightlifting began with my boxing coach a couple of years ago; we’d do one session a week focusing on power and I found myself really enjoying the challenge in lifting and of course I was liking the improvements it was making to my strength and abilities. It wasnt until around July last year that I really linked my food to my fitness and started getting into the idea of having a more structured eating and training plan (upon the discovery of Bodybuilding.com). Again I could see it was having a positive effect as much as it was growing my interest, I was eating healthier meals and immersing further into lifting; but the snacking was still there (and feeling like it too was gaining strength)

Me in July 2015This year however, has been the game changer. In March I signed up for the ‘Protein Discount Card’ “12 Week Transformation Challenge”. This consisted of a prescribed meal and training plan and an accompanying Facebook group to get to know your onine coaches and fellow challengers!

The first noticeable change was my eating. Ok in week 1 it was my birthday and I ate a whole cake over that week, but I think at that point I realised that I really did need to sort out my eating… Within 3 weeks I found the snacking had stopped and the urges were fading until they stopped altogether. Plus with all the training, I was seeing changes that I really liked, and this was actually a strong enough incentive to put the biscuits down and carry on!

Me week 1 of the Challenge – Feb 2016So after 12 weeks of working out and eating right I lost 5 pounds in weight, 2 inches off of my waist and dropped 2% in bodyfat. I have muscle definition and a developing 6 pack! Something that I can safely say I have never had in my life; I’m stronger and more motivated than ever to keep going. My diet is full of vegetables and low in dairy (being lactose intolerant this is a huge and beneficial accomplishment to have made), I enjoy food so much that I was driven to start this journey into blogging, nutrition and the fitness world. I’ve also met some wonderful people, the real eye opener here was seeing how vital a good support system is in staying on track.

Me at Week 12 – May 2016So with the first stage of my journey done, I move onto to stage 2. Now I am building on my 12 week base and working toward becoming even stronger and, as I make my way in the world of Fitness and lifting, I shall be taking you all along for the ride!!

Before and After! One lesson from this challenge is that it is very tough to see muscles on my super pale skin!Interested? A new Challenge is starting soon, head over to https://www.proteindiscountcard.com/ to find out more and sign up!

So now that I’m firmly back in reality, let’s talk about my weekend adventure to Birmingham and the BodyPower Expo!

So what is BodyPower?
Lifted straight off their website (www.bodypower.com)
“Started in 2009, BodyPower UK has grown into the most celebrated and comprehensive fitness event in the UK, attracting, inspiring and motivating 90,000 plus health and fitness enthusiasts over three days.”

In my words it’s a weightlifters heaven – A few of my favourite things are weights, clothes and food and this place had all 3 in abundance. With events, fitness challenges, bodybuilding competitions, clothing/food/equipment stalls and lots (and lots) of free samples, you eat, shop and show off your skills all in one very big place. And if that’s nt enough, you’ve got seminars, demonstrations, workshops and a gym to g along to should you wish!

So here are my Bodypower Highlights
Sampling and Free Stuff!
Yep virtually every stand had a protein bar, shake, pre/intra/post workout drink and glorious nut butter to sample! A personal favourite was Dr Zaks; where I attempted to overdose on nut butter and protein bread/bagels (& came home with a truly wonderful Apple and Cinnamon Peanut butter). Another was “Oh Yeah!” protein bars, I resisted buying any at the event although they were sooo good I’ll definitely be putting an order in sometime soon! Also most of the big nutrition names (Optimum, Maxi, CNP, Bodybuilding.com) had bags of freebies to giveaway if you were willing to wait in the Disneyworld style queues and sign up to a mailing list. I got around most so I now have a collection of free t-shirts, lots of whey and a MyProtein shaker (win!)

(my day 1 freebie haul alongside some of my purchases)

Shopping! This was my whole purpose in being at Bodypower, I wanted to shop and shop I did. Discovered LOADS of new brands and got some new kit from my go-to brands (Greens Powder from Bulkpowders was a very pleasant surprise).

GirlPower!
The real winner for me in terms of content was the irlPower zone. This was an area set up just to present and educate the women in the industry. My absolute number one top highlight was Erin Sterns talk (she is my hero) on motivating, training and eating. I left feeling truly inspired and ready to really lay out my goals and start making my place in the fitness world.

Seeing actual bodybuilding Competitions in Person
While there I stopped by the arena to watch one of the competitions. Since I started lifting have been intrigued by the “Bikini” class bodybuilders. Curious to see just how defined a competition state athlete was, I watched the Junior Bikini USN Classic. To my surprise it was a fantastic event to watch (putting aside my sparkly bikini envy – swarovski superfan here); it made me change my view on these type of competitions. I was always suspicious of an event based purely on women strutting around in bikinis and being judged. However, on seeing how much the competitors enjoy it, and the enthusiasm of the (male and female) audience; made me realise that isn’t a bikini parade, it’s a celebration of really hard work, building a body like that is not easy, nor is choosing to face up to the stereotypical idea of female beauty. These women are showing us that pride and perseverance are assets worth showing off!
(sorry for the fuzzy photo, I’ll be better prepared next time!)

So yes BodyPower was AMAZING and I am already excited for next year. I am now fully recovered from my nut butter hangover and feeling really inspired to carry on lifting!
And for your own amusement, here is me pulling a really stupid face for a photo!

Feel free to sign up for the Maxi Nutrition Challenge if you’re feeling inspired (the website is a the bottom of the photo there)!

#GetReal is my first campaign/mission on the blog and I reckon it’ll be an ongoing one rather than the short-burst viral campaign vision I had in my head (mainly as I have no idea how to create a viral campaign).

The inspiration for “Get Real” came from two things: very annoying (and often hurtful) stereotypes aimed at women and the excuses people make when it comes to improving health through food and/or exercise.

The Stereotypes:

“Real women have…..” “Real women are…”

I am so very tired of seeing these phrases. While I’m certain that there are plenty of wonderful women out there that do have curves or are size whatever but, just because I don’t fit that particular brief, it does not mean that I am somehow less of a woman. Real women have and haven’t got lots of things, in my eyes, if your heart tells you’re a woman, then you are woman, you need to pass a checklist to join the club…

“Weight lifting makes women look manly”

All I’m going to say is: No. No it does not.

The Plan: What it #GetReal going to do?

Well, let’s be honest, this campaign needs to give you something worthwhile as it’s most likely you’re reading this because you’re:

Interested in fitness/nutrition and just like t follow other people who are too.
You want to lose weight/get more active/eat healthier

You’d like to change up you eating/activity to improve health but you dont really know where to start

You’re just curious to see what I’m going to write

You know me personally and I have guilted you into reading my blog

My main aim is making “being realistic” a part of your own plan when approaching change. I know that sounds negative but long term success comes from long term change and this is by far the most difficult aspect of any plan, it’s not just a few weeks kind of thing. There is no quick fix to changing your lifestyle and at times it’s really bloody hard, so setting realistic goals can make a big difference.
However, by being realistic we can create goals that suit our own needs (your plan needs to be about you, no one else) and make changes (big or small) that make you feel good and motivated to keep striving for more.

So! Finally these are my goals for #GetReal:

Using my own story of getting into shape to highlight the realities of making a lifestyle change. We very seldom see beyond the”Before and After” of most peoples stories so, with no idea of what happened in between, it’s hard to understand just how that person succeeded. So I’ll share the good, the bad and the ugly, the challenges, successes and failures, in a bid to help you see the truth behind the end result.

Share simple steps that you can take to help you in reaching your health/fitness goals

Build a community for everyone to share their story – I would absolutely love to create a place where you can go to share success, stories, motivate and be motivated. Recently I’ve found Facebook groups to be such a great help to me and it’s my ultimate goal to bring the benefits of a community to as many people as possible. If you’d like to share your story, please get in touch through our Facebook/Instagram page!

There will be take-away tips for help with planning a lifestyle change however, as always just make sure that you always seek professional (GP, personal trainer, Dietician etc) guidance before trying anything new or if you have medical conditions/requirements/concerns.

Next month will be my 3rd ever trip to the Birmingham NEC but it’s the fist trip I’ve actually been excited about. My first two trips were the MODA Lingerie/Swimwear exhibition and the Clothes Show Live. Both were in my Lingerie business time period and looking back now attending both felt like a chore, by jumping straight in and turning my lingerie and corsetry passion into business, I had sucked the joy out of one of the things i loved most. Instead of being excited about seeing all the brands and being immersed in the atmosphere, I was too busy desperately trying to weigh up if I could afford something like this, could/should i exhibit next time, what do I do and say at these events, what if come away having made no money and no contacts?
In the end, I didn’t enjoy either event, I left both disappointed and disheartened by some of the less than friendly exhibitors (“if you want my opinion/advice, I charge £500 a day”said one rather cold individual and well, I wont name her but needless to say, I’ve never bought a single thing from her lingerie company as a result).

But this time when I go, I’m going to BodyPower and I cannot wait! This time I’m going because I want to, because I want to go learn from top athletes who are there because they want to help you, to stuff my face with all kinds of awesome food and buy enough kit to overload my car! The difference now is this blog is about sharing my passion rather than selling it, certainly one day there could a business in this for me (after all how kick ass is my little branded tank?!) but right now it’s about sharing the adventure and my love of food and lifting!

So without further adieu, Lesley’s BodyPower Prep Pack so far!

BodyPower Power Pass – To get in, can’t enjoy all the gooodness from outside afterall!

Verdict: 10/10 – Honestly I would pick this over any standard chocolate bar they are that good. The fat content rates a little higher than some but the pay off is that you are tasting actual chocolate and not some chocolate flavoured coating. The texture again just like any other chocolate bar (so not quite the jaw workout you get with other brands) so the main issue here is trying to remember that if you buy them in bulk, eating them all at once isn’t healthy (even if it is more macro friendly than a mars bar)…
Where to get them: http://www.musclefood.com/high-protein-snacks-1/protein-bars-1/grenade-carb-killa-bars.html

Verdict: 7/10 – it was nice but a little sickly sweet for me. There’s a bit of a whey-ey after taste but you sort of get used to it by the time you’re a few bites in. It’s a nice texture no effort at all to chew so I’d be keen to try some other flavours as I think it’s just this particualr flavour that doesnt appeal to me (in fact I can see cinnamon crunch and Peanut Butter cup flavours so definitely want to try those!)
Buy it from: http://www.musclefood.com/combat-crunch-white-choc-raspberry.html

Welcome all to Gains, Trains and Appetites, the place where you’ll find an array of useful advice, resources, tips are reviews along side lots of pictures of Food, workouts and clothes.

Fitness and healthy living is an adventure and for me, it’s all about finding the path that works for you. This is my journey, I’ve gone from a ridiculously unfit teen to a 30 year old full blown fitness addict. Like every journey I’m still learning, growing and trying new thing; so come along and join me for the ride – and hopefully you’ll find something to inspire and help you on your own journey! 🙂

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Please be aware that the content on this site has been designed as a basic guide. If you are considering trying anything featured on this site regarding to your health, safety and wellbeing please consult an appropriately qualified professional (Doctor, personal trainer, nutrionist) before doing so. Anything attempted without prior professional guidance is done so at your own risk.